Wherever he went, Don Baylor left his mark on baseball. He was an MVP and Manager of the Year, respected as a powerful slugger, punishing runner and commanding presence in any clubhouse.

And during nearly a half-century as a pro, baseball left its mark on him. Lots of them, in fact. When Baylor retired, he'd been plunked more than anyone in major league history.

Baylor was hit by fastballs, sliders and a bunch of pitches 267 times in his career. Baylor set the modern-day record in 1987 while playing for Boston, on the day he turned 38. After the game, the Red Sox gave him the souvenir ball.

“I can think of other ways to get a birthday present,” Baylor said.

Baylor, the bruiser who also held the bruise record for almost three decades, died Monday of cancer. He was 68.

His family said in a statement that Baylor died in his hometown of Austin, Texas, after a 14-year battle with multiple myeloma.

“One of the nicest men I've known unless you were a middle infielder on a DP,” former Baltimore teammate and Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer tweeted.

Baylor won the 1979 AL MVP with the California Angels, playing all 162 games and leading the majors with career bests of 139 RBIs and 120 runs. His 36 home runs were also his most.

Baylor later became the first manager of the Colorado Rockies, guiding them to his only playoff appearance as a skipper in the franchise's third season in 1995 and being honored for that accomplishment.

Just three others have won MVP and Manager of the Year awards — Frank Robinson, Joe Torre and Kirk Gibson.

It was the great Robinson who helped give Baylor a nickname that stuck forever.

Baylor was a 20-year-old rookie in 1970 on a team that eventually won the World Series when he was asked about trying to break into the Orioles' loaded outfield. Brash beyond his years, Baylor said he wasn't too worried, that once he got into one of his grooves, things would be OK.

Robinson saw that quote in a newspaper and, playfully in his role as judge of the club's Kangaroo Court, made sure to read it aloud in the Baltimore locker room.

With that, “Groove” was born.

Years later, as judge of the Kangaroo Court for the New York Yankees, Baylor once fined coach Don Zimmer. So why pick on such a beloved figure?

“Just for being Don Zimmer,” Baylor said.

“He was a tough man, and he didn't have to tell you he was tough,” Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said of his first big league skipper.